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The UK’s withdrawal from the European Union (EU) continues to cause many political and economic controversies. Many international firms are becoming victim to the sudden halt in exports due to Brexit deal issues. The post-Brexit scenarios have made businesses and their logistics operation a little too complicated. Due to paperwork complications of one small product, the whole lorry gets stuck in the customs. The strict regulations and multiple laws limit the profitability of medium and large-sized businesses. The only way to regulate the logistic operations is to send the products individually. Small businesses cannot afford the extra expense; hence, it restricts them from growing to full potential.
The post-Brexit situation is affecting the food business the most. The logistics operations of the sector have to be fast; otherwise, the food goes bad. The service suspension is affecting the food sector in the worst way possible. Small food businesses are dealing with £60k loss on an average per week. The fishing businesses are also facing massive losses due to a lack of sales in the UK. Most businesses are downsizing their production process as the UK market sales are significantly less than in EU markets.
The delay in the logistic process is mainly due to the post-Brexit red tape, but other regulations delay the groupage clearance. Recently, various reports are surfacing, stating the actual reasons for the delay. “All drivers must have a negative Covid test to pass the border; this is adding delay to the transport system. Either the gov needs to set up more testing centers or check the drivers on arrival. But the current system is not working” Spokesperson from www.hgvt.co.uk. The internal sources suggest that the groupage services will speed up from the start of 2021. However, the clearance and logistics process will still take longer than usual. The speed of the logistics process depends on communication, proper IT systems, and correct documentation.
The whole delay in the business’s logistic operation is making them consider their production strategy. There is no clear indication as to when the overall groupage service will speed up and become cost-effective. Many seafood businesses are facing huge losses due to the issue, and their sales are rapidly decreasing. Business owners are making firm efforts to raise their voices on this matter. However, no action has been taken on the groupage service delay matter. High-quality seafood is regularly circulated from the UK to the EU and vice versa. The new policies and the post-Brexit effects are incredibly damaging to the food and seafood industry.
The Scottish drinks and food sector is currently monitoring the situation and estimating the potential loss. If the sales strategy, logistic operations, and external relationship do not improve soon, the food sector will have to face £1m per day. It is a massive loss for the overall business sector, and the businesses’ sales are severely affected. The government must step in and make some mutual decisions to ease the export matter within the region. There must be some policies that both regions mutually agree on before more businesses fall victim to the issue. The groupage seems to be the only issue due to the paperwork complexities and multiple suppliers carrying multiple loads risk.
After many efforts of business owners, the groupage issue is finally coming to notice. The higher officials are making an effort to talk about this matter and reach a mutual agreement. The problems are fast-moving, and there will be a solution to support dying food businesses. The whole logistics operation was also profoundly affected due to the holiday session. Most of the fruit suppliers could not enter back into the UK due to the three-day Christmas holiday. The Covid-19 situation is also contributing to the delay in logistics operations. There is a new policy currently, which requires the lorry drivers to carry a negative Covid test. This policy is a lot more convenient for the drivers as they save a lot of time. The on-spot Covid tests take at least a day as drivers don’t get their test results before 24-hours. The goods reach the warehouse almost immediately once the drivers are cleared at the border.
Overall, there are a lot of businesses that are facing export issues due to the post-Brexit issue. The new policies, along with the Covid situation, is not helping resolve the matters a lot. However, the leverage of carrying a negative has undoubtedly speed-up the process.
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